Could GIPSA facilitate marketing of ethanol co-products?

Federal agency seeks comments on current standards, need for new ones

Jan 25, 2016

In a notice published in the Federal Register, USDA’s Grain Inspection Packers and Stockyards Administration is soliciting comments on how it can best facilitate the marketing of grains, oilseeds, rice, pulses and related products, including distillers grains.

The production of distillers grains has grown with increased ethanol production.

According to USDA’s Economic Research Service, the United States produced an estimated 44.6 million metric tons of DDGS in the 2014-15 crop year, compared to 12.4 million metric tons when GIPSA published its first notice of proposed rulemaking for testing of co-products of ethanol production in 2007.

Should GIPSA get involved in ethanol co-product testing?

GIPSA continued to monitor the industry and support its efforts to market ethanol co-products.

DDGS exports have increased, totaling 11 million metric tons in the 2014-15 crop year, or nearly 25 percent of domestic production. That contrasts with 1.8 million metric tons of production in 2006-07, when 14.5 percent of production was exported.

GIPSA cites increasing supply, successful foreign market development efforts by USDA and trade organizations and two years of higher prices for soybean meal and corn as reasons for reviewing the standards.

To ensure that standards and official grading practices remain relevant, GIPSA asks interested parties to comment on the relevance of current standards, methods, grading practices and on potential market needs for new standards or services.

GIPSA asks that commenters comment on the following issues:

- “Are there any market-identified quality attributes that GIPSA does not currently describe (or provide testing) that would facilitate the marketing of grain, oilseeds, and related products?”

- “What role should GIPSA take, if any, in standardizing the testing of inputs and outputs of ethanol co-product processing? Has anything changed in the marketing of ethanol and ethanol co-products since GIPSA's last ANPR in 2007 related to standardization, product description, or quality assessment?”

- “Are there any other services that GIPSA could offer to facilitate the marketing of grain, oilseeds, or related products?”